Orla is an Irish name meaning “golden princess.” This pattern came about because a friend, a self-proclaimed princess, wanted to learn how to knit cables. I came up with this super-easy, 6-stitch cable that wends its way up the hat and resembles embellishments found in medieval crowns. This pattern needs a squishy, worsted-spun yarn with a good...

This pattern is in an all-over eyelet 6 stitch cable on a reverse stockinette (purl) background. The yarn is a beautiful, hand dyed, plied yarn with beautiful bounce and stitch definition.

This hat is named for our dear friend Mini, an amazing woman and survivor. Now a Patient Mentor, Mini’s strength and beauty serve as an inspiration and steadying hand to cancer warriors everywhere. Mini loves the carefree look of a cloche, so we start out with a nice, textured base in a lovely neutral palette. To give the hat some sass, we whom...

This hat came from all the people that I’ve met that say they could never knit because it looks too hard. Stuff and nonsense, I say! This hat is perfect for beginners. The only stitches one needs to know are casting on and the knit stitch. There are no seams to sew and no binding off. The top knot is created by simply rolling the hat back over ...

Gwendolen was a legendary queen of Briton. She was thrown over for a younger woman by her husband, Locrinus. Feeling rather put out, she amassed an army and defeated him in battle at the river Stour in 1130 C.E.

This hat was created for a patient that requested “something manly with a short brim.” That being said, this hat could easily go to a woman with an adjustment in color palette.

This hat came from the catch phrase of a friend of mine. A wonderfully strong, beautiful survivor of multiple cancers, she maintains that compassion was instrumental in her recoveries. Her catch phrase “I got nothing but love for you, baby,” is a reminder that compassion saves lives.

This is a quick, sweet hat with a rolled brim. The super bulky yarn and large needles mean (almost) instant gratification, even for a beginner. This hat can be customized with color choice, the addition of a button or flower, stripes, or even a ribbon band at the base of the crown. The super bulky yarn make it an ideal warm hat for the chemo wa...

This is another pattern for Operation Chemo Comfort. It reminds me of a helmet, so I named it for one of the Valkyries. This is a good hat to use up little bits and bobs of leftover skeins, as the stripes are only 3 rows wide.

I wanted to make a classic turban. I am fascinated by the idea of taking everyday materials and making practical, yet elegant, clothing. The pattern is knit flat as a scarf, then folded back on itself and seamed. The broken rib keeps the knitting interesting while being easily memorized. This pattern is named for my mum’s mum, herself a cancer ...

This hat is created using short rows. The hat is begun with a provisional cast on and worked side-to-side, joining the ends together with the three needle bind-off. Stitches are then picked up at the base of the hat for the brim. When viewed from above, the short row sections create pie-wedge shapes, hence the name (Pie-wedge-it).

This is a simple, comfortable hat made with a hint of slouch. This hat was designed for last minute-gifting, but has been used for multiple charity knits. The bulky yarn ensures a toasty head.

This is a great, basic hat made from worsted yarn. It is endlessly customizable with the addition of stripes, knit/purl patterning, lengthening of ribbing, etc. This pattern is a blank canvas- go out and play with it!

This pattern was created by request from a friend that had VERY long, very curly hair. She wanted a hat that could double as a bandana/snood and help tame her mane on bad hair days. Sadly, it became her favorite chemotherapy hat because it covered her entire head, but she could use the open top to “vent herself” if she had a hot flash. Thankful...

This is a quick hat that looks much more complicated than it is. The pattern creates a spiral rib that swirls around the hat. Made in a bulky alpaca, it is warm enough for even the Northern winters.

Gary is a pattern that developed from my signature “What Happens When I do THIS?” line of knitting design. What happened was that the beautiful, long-repeating colors broke out into the pattern repeats. I have made Gary with monochromatic yarn, and he is just as beautiful. Gary is a floppy, funky, almost beret- type of hat that is ridiculously ...

This hat evolved from receiving a gift of some fluorescent yarn. I thought that the addition of a neutral would help balance the vibrancy of the other colors. The pattern is easily memorized, and it knits up in a snap. Glo-worm lends itself to endless color combinations and personalization. Plus, the ribbing means that patients can easily pull ...

This hat began life as another “Basic Bulky Hat” for Operation Chemo Comfort, but I applied my “What Happens When I Do This…” theory to the design. The answer was a fun little lace section just to keep the knitting interesting.

This is a soft, comfortable hat with a rolled brim that covers the ears in a “pseudo cloche” fashion. It is a good stash buster, as it only requires 1-1.5 skeins to complete. Each pattern repeat could be constructed in a different color to gobble up small quantities of yarn. It was originally designed for use in Operation Chemo Comfort, a proje...